Lazy Slow Cooker Steak Chili

Slow cooker steak chili is a delicious and hearty recipe that is so easy you will want to add it to your regular meal rotation. Tender pieces of pulled beef, beans, and tomatoes all slow-cooked together with just the right spices make for the perfect one-bowl meal.

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A square bowl filled with shredded chucks of beef and veggies in a thick red sauce garnished with parsley

Chili is one of the most versatile dishes around. It is a true four-season meal that is just as popular being served at a ski resort on a cold snowy evening as it is being dished up on a hot sunny afternoon at a beachside cafe. No occasion, location, or vacation can't be made better by a delicious bowl of chili.

So why is this my personal favorite chili? Slow cooker steak chili is one of the easiest beef chili's because it requires absolutely no cooking in advance. Ground beef has to be browned and drained of its fat before it can be chili worthy. This delicious recipe skips the preparatory cooking and gets right down to business.

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🍅Shopping list
🥣Method
🍽Serving ideas
Storing Leftovers
😉Hints & hacks
❓Frequently asked questions
More great slow cooker chili recipes
📖 Recipe

🍅Shopping list

Click here for exact quantities

A crockpot full of all chili ingredients prior to cooking. Each ingredient is labeled

To make this easy steak chili recipe you will need:

roast (chuck roast works well) or stew meat
onion
green pepper
diced tomato
tomato sauce
black beans
kidney or red beans
chili seasoning (both homemade and prepackaged work)
minced garlic
salt and pepper to taste
Optional: chopped hot chili peppers

🥣Method

If you are planning to use a slow cooker liner, placing it in your crock-pot is always the first (and most often forgotten) step. Add in your meat followed by green peppers, onion, diced tomato, tomato sauce, beans, and garlic. If you want to make your chili spicier, add in the extra chili peppers.

The final item to place in your crockpot is your chili seasoning. Prepackaged seasoning works perfectly fine here, although I prefer to make my own.

Mixing your own lets you know exactly what is going into it - no extra salt or preservatives included. It also allows you to have additional control over how much or how little flavoring you would like to add to your dish.

Cover your slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours.

Instruction for homemade chili seasonings can be found by clicking here

A cooked roast on a white plate with two hands holding two different forks beginning the shredding process

When cooking is finished, use tongs to remove the roast (if you used stew beef cubes, you can skip this step) and place on a plate. Using two forks, shred your roast by pulling it apart. Return your shredded beef to your crockpot and cook until you are ready to serve. If you are using beef that has already been cut into chunks, just stir and serve. A small taste test will let you know if salt or pepper is needed.

🍽Serving ideas

Pulled beef chili is seriously delicious served in so many ways. It is best in a bowl, with a nice crusty bread served alongside it. A garden salad makes for a cool and crunchy sidekick. To dress it up a bit, it can be served on a bed of rice or riced cauliflower. If you are feeling "gourmet" slice off the top of a medium-sized loaf of round bread and scoop out the middle. This will make for a wonderful chili bread bowl.

Toppings are also a great way to customize your chili experience. Shredded cheese, sour cream and guacamole are delicious add-ons. As are chili flakes, if want want to dial up the heat even further. Tortilla chips are always great alongside chili and Crockpot Zucchini and Squash Parmesan rounds out any meal perfectly.

A around black bowl filled with chili with a spoon picking some of it up.

Storing Leftovers

Slow cooker steak chili leftovers can be stored in meal-sized containers in either your refrigerator or freezer. It will last for about 3-4 days in the refrigerator and up to 6 months in the freezer. One great way to use leftovers of this dish is in a traveling mini crockpot food warmer. This will allow you to have a warm and wonderful lunch/dinner when you are away from home.

This is a perfect meal for days when your people will be eating at different times. After the cooking time, turn your slow cooker to warm (or have it automatically switch to warm if your slow cooker has this feature) and everyone can have a hot and filling meal, no matter what time they are ready to eat.

😉Hints & hacks

Want to make your shredded beef chili even easier? Instead of using a roast, make it with pre-cut stew beef chunks.
Hate cutting veggies? Both onions and peppers are available pre-cut in the market. They are often in the fresh vegetable section, but are more economical purchased in the frozen vegetable section and can be tossed right into your slow cooker frozen.
If you are shredding your beef, some people prefer to use a handheld mixer. This is a super-fast way to shred a larger piece of meat (if you choose to shred this way, I recommend shredding in a bowl to cut down on potential splatter).
The best way to confirm if meat is fully cooked is to use a meat thermometer. Beef is considered safe to eat when it has reached an internal temperature of at least 145ºF. Keep in mind that it is best to cook your roast well beyond the time when it first reaches that temperature to help make it extra tender.
I always recommend the use of a slow cooker liner. Of course, this is an optional step. I like to purchase my liners in bulk for a less expensive per-piece price. Here are the liners I buy.
In the market for a new slow cooker? Here is the one I am currently lusting after

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❓Frequently asked questions

Two square bowls. One filled with chili and the other filled with colorful

How can I make my chili thicker?

Two super easy options are:
A. leave the top off and cook on high for the last hour or so to allow for extra evaporation, or
B. Add instant mashed potato flakes, one tablespoon at a time, and stir. Continue until desired consistency is reached. Be sure to stir for a few minutes between tablespoons. It is easy to over do it.

This recipe is too mild for me, how can I turn up the heat?

There are always lots of ways to dial up the heat! To spice things up, you can consider adding extra chili powder, serrano peppers, red pepper flakes or sriracha sauce.

I accidentally made my chili too spicy. How can I turn down the heat?

The easiest way to reduce the heat in chili is by adding a dairy product like sour cream or cheese.

What is the best type of beef for this recipe?

Chuck roast with some marbling is generally the type of roast most recommended for this type of recipe. In a pinch, brisket shreds well too. Diced beef stew chunks work equally well and will alleviate the need to shred. Short rib meat would also be perfect in this recipe.